Foot in mouth as usual, Deputy PM Zahid attacks cartoons as “intellectual egoism”. Assuming, for argument’s sake, that he understands the meaning of those two words, which he may quite probably not, how can he conclude that his description has any sense or meaning?
Drawing is just one more way of pointing out to the public in general that the subject of the drawing is deserving of criticism or contempt. The targets of such cartoons would be better employed in asking themselves why; rather than trying to belittle the craft.
Cartoonists do not waste time and effort on lampooning public persons who behave with propriety and correctly. What would be the point? Rather they disclose with a pencil what some newspapers may not dare to put into print. The drawing needs no words to make its point and the proof of that is the reaction of the lampooned, such as Zahid.
The latter would do well to reflect on the reasons why the government of arch thief Najib, of which he is so prominent a member, attracts such unfavourable notice for everything it does. The answer, in case he is not capable of discovering it, is that the actions of criminals always attract public notice and disapproval, even where the police and justice are occupationally blind.
Believe it or not the people do NOT approve of mega crime nor of its authors. If that lesson needs to be learned in certain quarters, DPM Zahid included, the forthcoming election will make the lesson plain.